Photo by Byron Ng, Kaiser High School

After the Cougar football team experienced their fourth loss on Homecoming night, against the Moanalua Menehunes, the final score being 21-12, sophomore, defensive end, Shiloh LaBoy said "We still gotta keep our heads up. I mean it's only our fourth game played, and we still got plenty more chances. But I think we gotta step it up on offense so that we can score [more points]."

On Aug. 20, Kaiser was on the road to open their regular season, being toppled by Farrington, 28-12. Having two full weeks of preparation due to a bye, the Cougars played their game against the undefeated Kahuku Red Raiders on Sept. 3. Unfortunately, "their defense absolutely killed us," said LaBoy. The game resulted in a 39-0 shut out.          

By this time, the Cougars had already started off on a bad note, with a 0-2 record. However, Castle Coach Nelson Maeda didn't see our Cougar football team as a weak team, nor did he judge us according to our current record. “They may be winless, but it’s pretty deceiving,” Maeda said. “They’re very athletic, very big in the trenches.” Kaiser was back on the road the following week, challenging Coach Maeda, and Knights. The Cougars played this one all the way to the end, yet they couldn't pull through a win. With a late score, a 60-yard punt return by Castle's wide receiver Kamalei Kam-Aweau, the final score was 30-27.

Kaiser wide receiver Jourdan Soloman has averaged six yards, on seven receptions on the season. He also contributed one rush for ten yards on Homecoming night against the Menehunes. "He is one of our best receivers although we don’t pass much. He is one of those ‘go to guys’ when you need that long first down," said Gonda.           

Senior, Brighson Tolentino, had an amazing 99 yard touchdown run off a fumble recovery that led to the Cougars last touchdown against Castle, unfortunately 27 points on the board just didn't cut it. "I picked up that ball and just kept running," said Tolentino.           

Cougar running back, Joshua Gonda, has fulfilled 405 rushing yards, on 54 carries, with five out of the seven touchdowns scored by the entire team. During Kaiser's Castle game, Gonda contributed three touchdowns to keep the Cougars on top for the first three quarters. However, 262 yards on 26 carries couldn't bring home the big upset at Castle's homecoming game. According to Gonda, "for the red division, I’m surprised because I have found nothing really different in the two, besides the hitting. Some people need to realize we breathe the same air, and I’m proud of how great my o-line has been doing against all these giant division one college prospects that they go against every Friday night."

Gonda also feels that the team has been strengthened by new additions. "I have played 10 years of football and never have I been so close to the boys on my team before," said Gonda, as he described the Cougar football team. "I think it had a lot to do with the influence by our head coach, on how important it is to be as one. That's what brought us together," he said. Gonda hopes to continue this 10-year tradition, and not let this football season be the end of his football career. "I would like to play at the next level for sure. I think any one that wants to play a sport should go as far as they can with it," said Gonda. For this young athlete, the worst feeling is "going into the locker room after a loss, and knowing you didn't give everything you got to win the game." That being said, Gonda proudly influences all athletes out there to "give it all they got."            

As LaBoy stated, Kaiser's team is currently lacking from an offensive standpoint. This season, the Cougars average a gain of 3.2 yards per reception, while their opponents complete about double that distance, with 6.175 yards. The Cougars also managed to total 71 lost yards in four games played. "You know, whenever my uncle used to watch T.V., he would always yell at the screen, telling the players to move forward, not backward," said LaBoy. To up some wins, hopefully the Cougars will execute their plays by moving the ball forward, scoring quick points, and keeping their opponents from entering the red zone. However, one question remains to be answered. "Do you still have faith under fire?" asked senior Seth Keolanui.